Bathinda: Mandi Gobindgarh is the most polluted in the state, ranked 44th worldwide with an annual average PM2.5 of 60 µg/m³ in 2025, down from 78.4 µg/m³ in 2024. Chandigarh is ranked 57th with an annual PM2.5 of 54.3 µg/m³, but down from 69.7 µg/m³ in 2024. Ludhiana has become the third most polluted city in the region, with 66th position and annual average PM 2.5. µg/m³ below 60.8 µg/m³ in 2024.
US-Israel-Iran war news live updates: Amazon Web Services ‘disrupted’ after drone strike in Bahrain; Saudis, UAE considering joining Iran war; 82nd Airborne Division to deploy to the Middle East: The rankings were released on Tuesday by IQ Air, a Swiss air quality technology company, which is considered the most reliable. The rankings have been released for 9446 cities across 143 countries. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), an annual PM2.5 of 5 µg/m³ is considered a safe limit. Apart from these three cities, four cities in Punjab have been ranked between 100-200 as Amritsar has been ranked 101st, where PM2.5 has decreased from 57.3 µg/m³ to 46.6 µg/m³ in 2024, Khanna has been ranked 104th, where PM2.5 has decreased from 46.4 µg/m³ to 49.7 µg/m³ in 2024, Jalandhar has been ranked 117th in 2025 with an annual PM 2.5 of 45.1 µg/m³, which is the highest in 2024. 48.6 µg/m³.
Patiala ranks 172nd in 2025 with 41.3 µg/m³ annual PM2.5, down from 48.0 µg/m³ in 2024. Rupnagar ranks 219th in 2025 with 39.2 µg/m³ annual PM2.5, up from 48.4 µg/m³ in 2024. Bathinda ranks 310th, with 35.9 µg/m³ annual PM2.5 in 2025, up from 35.6 in 2024. IQAir released its 8th annual World Air Quality Report, which presents a comprehensive analysis of global air pollution data since 2025 and highlights persistent health risks, emerging regional trends and significant monitoring gaps around the world.
Loni was recorded as the most polluted city in India, with an annual average PM2.5 concentration of 112.5 µg/m³, 22 times higher than the WHO guideline. The world’s 25 most polluted cities were all located in India, Pakistan and China, with India accounting for three of the four most polluted cities. Comparing this year’s report with last year, 54 countries saw an increase in annual average PM2.5, 75 countries saw a decline, two saw no change and 12 were newly featured in this year’s dataset.